FOMC Minutes Diagnosis: Mass Schizophrenia
We just got the full comments from the August 5 FOMC meeting. The FOMC sees continued downside to growth with a damped economy lasting several quarters. Members continue to believe that the next rate…
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In the latest installment of the "Batman" film series, loyal butler Alfred tries to explain the behavior of some of the most depraved criminals. He points out to a befuddled Bruce Wayne that "Some…
Bernanke Talks Down Economic Expectations & Inflation
Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke is giving a speech out at the K.C. Fed Symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyoming this morning. His released comments show that he is expecting the economic weakness to persist and…
Jobless Figures For Dummies: Three Million More Unemployed
The latest jobless numbers are as complex as Einstein’s Theory of Relativity. Leaving aside the fact that the govenment appears unable to turn out economic figures which are of any use to the press…
Annual Inflation Heads Toward 10%
The annual inflation rate in the US will be above 10% by the end of the year. Almost all the signs are pointing that way. The AP writes "The Labor Department reported that wholesale…
The Smell of Stagflation
This morning is going to be a disappointment for some who were hoping that inflation was going to be much less hot than estimates. The July number for annualized CPI showed +5.6% inflation, which…
Drop-Off In Driving To Undercut Economy
Americans drove 12.2 billion miles less in June than they did in the same month a year ago. That is a drop of almost 5%. The fall-off in activity is likely to help gas…
U.S. Inflation Versus E.U. Recession
Thursday is going to be a key economic event day for traders who trade just about everything. You could almost consider it an Olympic boxing match titled US INFLATION VS. RECESSION" as a catch…
Japan Moves Into A Recession Ahead Of The US
By the clock, Japan is twelve hours ahead of the US, By the numbers, it is entering a recession. By most estimates, Japan still has the No. 2 economy in the world based on…
Blue Chip Economists Too Optimistic, Again
Economists think that growth of the US GDP will continue to slow into the second half of the year and then into 2009. Their opinions are too upbeat. The monthly poll by Blue Chip…
The Government Helps Small Business, But A Very Little
The federal government decided to give small businesses a leg up. It is simply a token gesture and its likely to protect only a very small number of companies from the economic downturn. A…
China: Exporting Inflation
China’s producer price index moved up over 10% last month. According to MarketWatch, this is the largest increase since 1996. This level of inflation makes it almost certain that China can no longer be…
The New Economic Stimulus Package: $100 Billion In Tax Rebates A Month
Based on GDP figures and June numbers out of retailers including Wal-Mart (WMT), the tax rebate program helped the economy for about 30 days. July retail numbers seem to show that the effect did…
Jobless Claims Hit New Highs: More Babysitter Positions Needed
The Labor Department just posted a pretty ugly jobs number. Normally we do not pay quite as much attention to the weekly numbers, but they are getting worse and worse. This last week’s report…
FOMC Comments Likely Put Rate Hikes Beyond Election
The Federal Open Market Committee decided today to keep its target for the federal funds rate at 2%. What is more important than the decision is that this puts the chances of a rate…